Etymology

The literal meaning was "spear-point", but over time it came to be used by the Elves for all manner of sharp or spear-like objects.[source?]

Tolkien translates naith into English using the word gore (meaning "sharp point"), a very close equivalent. Just like naith, gore can describe any of a wide range of narrow or pointed items, though it is now so rarely used that many readers find it almost as obscure as its Elvish equivalent. Its etymology goes back in time to Old English gára (a word for a narrow triangular piece of land) so Haldir's translation is a very precise one.[source?]